Haenaetang breakfast near Yeonan Pier fish market, Incheon: Sopuri

24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk, Yeonan Pier General Fish Market Branch

I went to the Yeonan Pier fish market to buy blue crabs and ended up wandering into 24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk — it's become one of my all-time favorite restaurants. I already had a regular haejangguk (hangover soup) place I went to, but grocery shopping led my feet somewhere new. They also serve haenaetang, a dish I love, so it turns out I don't need to drive all the way to Yangpyeong anymore. It was that good.

Parking and first impressions: a private lot behind Sopuri, open 24 hours

24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk, Yeonan Pier General Fish Market Branch has a spacious dedicated parking lot right behind the building. Parking around other Yeonan Pier restaurant alleys is usually tricky, so this was a nice convenience.

The lights stay on 24 hours to serve truck drivers passing through the port and merchants from the nearby fish market, so a hearty breakfast is always available.

The place hasn't been open all that long, but thanks to its unbeatable access right next to the market, it was full of energy from customers.

Without the usual chaos you'd expect from a 24-hour restaurant, the interior was remarkably clean, and the staff greeted us warmly.

What side dishes come with it? Onion, green chili and yeolmu kimchi at the self-serve bar

24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk's fish market branch serves napa cabbage kimchi, kkakdugi (radish kimchi), and pickled radish, along with a well-stocked self-serve bar. Even after the first setting, you could freely go back for onions, green chili, savory ssamjang (seasoned soybean paste), and cool yeolmu kimchi (young radish kimchi) as many times as you liked — really satisfying.

Having visited haejangguk spots all over the country, most places just put out one or two basic kimchi side dishes. This one was different.

The neatly arranged kimchi was perfectly fermented with excellent umami, and pairing crisp vegetables with the ssamjang put this place right up there with the best Yeonan Pier restaurants.

Beef head gukbap: milky, deeply simmered broth

My wife prefers clear broth over spicy, so she ordered the beef head gukbap (rice soup). The milky broth looked quite rich from the start.

Unlike the Yangpyeong haejangguk, the beef head gukbap comes with a portion of thin noodles, and there's a quiet pleasure in eating the noodles before mixing in the rice.

Instead of a standard bowl of rice, it came in a big bowl, and it was surprising to learn you could get refills if you ran out.

The beef chunks in the gukbap were cut generously, letting you fully enjoy the chewy, savory flavor unique to Korean beef.

I'm not sure if they keep the broth simmering nonstop since it's a 24-hour restaurant, but for a haejangguk specialist, the beef head gukbap was solidly made.

The chewy texture unique to beef head grew on me the more I ate, and it seemed like it would suit people like my wife who can't handle overly spicy food.

Are the rice and seonji refills really free?

Both rice and seonji (clotted ox blood) come with unlimited free refills at the self-serve bar. Since the rice was refillable, we went back for more several times. They must be confident in their rice, because there was a big stack of branded rice bags.

I've often found myself running a bit short on rice while eating gukbap, but if you come to this Yeonan Pier restaurant, that's one thing you won't have to worry about.

What really surprised me was that seonji was also unlimited and free. I almost wanted to ask the owner if they were actually making any money.

Fresh seonji, simmered thoroughly, was kept warm in a rice cooker at the self-serve bar. When I asked a staff member if it was okay to eat, they said to help myself as much as I wanted.

Honestly I only scooped a little as a test without expecting much, but it was so good that — sorry to the owner — I went back for refills three times.

Both rice and seonji were free, and on our way out, they even handed us bottled water each, telling us to take care of our health in the hot weather. I was simply amazed.

What is haenaetang, the signature soup at Sopuri?

Haenaetang is 24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk's signature dish, combining the best of spicy haejangguk with the heartiness of naejangtang (beef offal soup) in a single bowl. The beef head gukbap was great, but you really have to try the haenaetang to taste this place's true skill.

Among gukbap enthusiasts, it's considered a must-order.

Loaded with carefully selected domestic beef offal, it's completely free of any gamey smell, filling your mouth with a chewy, tender, and savory flavor.

The dish normally doesn't include seonji, but bringing over some warm seonji from the self-serve bar to add to the broth gives it a much more varied texture.

Stirring in a spoonful of the spicy chili oil and salty minced chili on the table doubled the deep, spicy umami.

With prices going up everywhere these days, this kind of value and generous portion makes it impossible not to call this a Yeonan Pier favorite.

Wrap-up: why Sopuri works for breakfast at Yeonan Pier

24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk, Yeonan Pier General Fish Market Branch is a true 24-hour Yeonan Pier favorite where you can always get a hearty meal whenever you need one. The self-serve bar and unlimited refills stood out in particular, and both the haenaetang and the beef head gukbap were satisfying. I'd recommend it as a haejangguk specialist that nails both value and flavor.

• Dedicated parking lot behind the building
• Open 24 hours, so you can visit anytime
• Beef head gukbap with generous chunks of Korean beef
• Unlimited rice and seonji refills
• Signature haenaetang made with domestic beef offal

Visit information

• 📍 24-Hour Sopuri Yangpyeong Haejangguk, Yeonan Pier General Fish Market Branch
• 🏠 10 Yeonanbudu-ro 33beon-gil, 1F, Incheon, South Korea
• ⏰ Sun 0:00–21:00 / Mon 6:00–24:00 / Tue–Sat 24 hours
• 🚗 Dedicated parking lot available
• 🚌 Bus 12 or 24 from Dongincheon Station
• ⭐ 24-hour service, self-serve bar, free rice/seonji refills, bottled water provided